1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to medical devices and, more specifically, to a device for applying selected forces to a patient's spine.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Spinal treatment devices treat lower back pain by applying a force to selected vertebrae of a patient. Existing spinal devices apply either a static force on the patient or a simple cyclical force to the patient. The use of oscillations allows the patient to relax while the force is being applied, thereby facilitating the treatment. The simple cyclical patterns, however, tend to relax only certain muscles in the spinal area and, thus, fail to achieve complete relaxation quickly. Complete relaxation makes spinal rehabilitation more effective. Also, there is evidence that certain vibrations frequencies stimulate tissue regeneration and bone growth.
In certain situations, applying a specific vibration frequency to a specific location on the patient's spine is beneficial. Existing systems generally apply a vibration to a harness, but do not target specific locations for the vibrations.
Therefore, there is a need for a system that is configured to apply vibrations of a specific frequency to a specific location on the patient's spine, while also applying a predetermined force to the patient's spine.